Biscuit-stacking machine



F. BLANDO.

BISCUIT STACKING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED No.2?, 1919.

1,351,018. Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

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BISCUIT STACKING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED DEC.27, 1919.

Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

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BlsculT sTAcKING MACHINE.

. APPLICATION FILED DEC. 27, 1919. 1,351,018.

F.BLANuo.` BISCUT STACKING MACHINE.

Mmc/umu man ue. 21. 1919. 1351,018 Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

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F. BLANDO.

BISCUIT STACKING MACHINE.

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Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

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F. BLANDO. BISCUIT STACKING MACHINE. AyPucAnou man mm2?. 1919.

Patented Aug. 31, 1920'.

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APPLICATION FILED DEC.21. 1919.

Patented Aug. 31, 1920'.

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BISCUT-STACKING MACI'EIIN'E.

Specification of Letters Patent. @Patented Ati-lg. 31, 1926.

application aiefi December 27, iaia serial iro. massa.

To all 'whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, F RANK BLANDO, a subject of the King of italy residing at N ew York, in the county and tate of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Biscuit-Stacking Ma' chilies, of which the following is afull, clear, and exact specification.

This invention relates to machines for stacking biscuits or cakes, and has for its object to provide means for mechanically stacking such cakes-or biscuits ready to be placed in the packing boxes in which they are sold. n

lt is the aim of the invention to incorporate in a single machine means for removing biscuits or small cakes from the pans in which they are baked, and to stack them, after removal, in compact rows from which the desirednumber may be readily picked up b the attendant and placed in the boxes. eretofore, it has been the practice to employ several attendants for stacking up the several rows of cakes on the pans in which they are baked, before they are ready to be picked up in groups or stacks for placing in the boxes. The present-ini' vention eliminates this stacking by hand,

and not only renders the stacking operation more sanitary but reduces expense and saves` time.

rllhe invention will be {irsthereinafter described in connection with the accompanying drawings, which lconstitute part of this speciiication, and then more specifically defined in the claims at the end of the description.

1n the accompanying drawings, wherein similar reference characters are used to designate corresponding parts throughout the several views Figure l is a plan view of a machine constructed substantially in accordance with this invention, showing the different steps in the stacking operation, and parts of the three endless conveyers being broken away to disclose the supporting surfaces below 4 them.

Fig. 7 is a detailed perspective view of the rocking biscuit removing device.

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary perspective view showing how the spring teeth are attached to the strip by which they are carried on said biscuit removing device.

Fig. 9 is a detailed perspective view of ope of said teeth removed from its carrying s ri ig. 10 is a detailed broken perspective View of the rocking supporting strip for the biscuit removing device or knife.

Fig. 11 4is a Adetailed Vperspective view of one of the spring-pressed brackets for actuating said supporting strip to let the pans of biscuits pass the same.

Fig. 12 is a perspective view of this bracket showing the arrangement with re- .spect to said supporting strip, and its sliding pivot.V

F 13 is a detailed sectional view illustrating the positions of the biscuit removing knife and its supporting strip normally, that is, before a pan reaches the saine.

Fig. 14, is a similar viewshowing the next step in the operation of the same parts.

Fig. 15 1s a similar view of the same parts showing their relative positions after one pan has passed and another is approaching,

porting strip for the knife, said knife and other parts being removed for the sake of clearness.

Fig. 17 is a detailed perspective view of a portion of the conveyer for the pans, showing one of the cleats carried thereby forengaging said pans, and

Fig. 18 is a detailed section through the i connection between one end of one of the cleats and a link of the conveyer chain.

The operating mechanism of the machine may be mounted on asuitable frame 1 in which are journaled shafts 2 and 3 near opposite ends thereofcarrying sprocket wheels 4 and 5, respectively, over which conveyer chains 6 are passed so as to run through the length `of the machine. These conveyer chains have cleats 7 attached thereto and extending between them at suitable intervals for engaging and propelling pans 8 in which the biscuits or cakes 9 are baked and in which they are fed into the machine as they come from the oven (not shown) in any suitable manner. Each of the cleats 7 may be formed with a depending lug 10 at each end to extend between the links 11 of the con veyer chain where it is secured by a cross pin or rivet 12, as shown in Fig. 18.

rlhe lower bight of the conveyer engages above sprockets 13 and 14 on shafts 15 and 16, and also engages below other sprockets 17 on a shaft 18 arranged between the shafts 15 and 16, as best shown in Fig. 4, all of said shafts being suitably journaled in the frame 1. The shaft 18 carries cams 19 preferably attached to the inner faces of the sprockets 17, Figs. 4 and 6, for actuating the knockers 20 which are pivoted at 21 on a cross bar 22 of the frame 1 so as to rock under the influence of said cams. The inner ends of said knockers are equipped with rollers 23 which bear antifrictionally upon the cams, while the outer ends of said knocker levers have pads 240 attached thereto to strike the bottoms of the pans as they pass -along on the conveyer and before they reach the biscuit removing knife, so that the biscuits will be loosened from the' bottom of the pans and there will be no diiiiculty'in their being removed by said knife. The cams 19 are so 'timed as to -actuate the knockersl to strike v ing arms 24 near its ends, said arms having laterall projecting rollers 25 to engage the hook s aped ends 26 of operating strips v27 for the biscuit removingknife.

Said strips 27 are` hinged at 28 to end pieces 29 which are journaled -on pivots 30 on the frame 1 and carry the biscuit removing knife 31. Said knife, as best shown in Figs. 7, 8, and 9, comprises a cross vrod or lbar 32() preferabl formed with a tapered edge 33 facing t e approaching pans, and alsor having notches 34 at intervals in which spring fingers 35 are fastened by having-.the rear portions thereof bent around to conform to said notched ortions of the bar, as shown in Fig. 9. T ese spring lingers constitute the edge proper of the knife, and their outer asshole flexible ends rest upon the pans and serve to remove the biscuits therefrom as said pans pass below the knife. The hooked ends 26 of the strips 27 are raised under tension of springs 36 which serve to hold them in engagement with the rollers 25 until the latter pass above said hooked ends. The arms 24 have curved ends 37 to ride easily over the lateral edges of the strips 27 so that the latter will not be actuated until the rollers 25 engage the hooked ends of said strips, which will occur only once in each revolution of said shaft 18 and arms 24.

rlhe knife is normally supported on a cross bar 32 pivotally connected to a transverse piece 39 extending between the sides of the frame 1 so as to rock thereon, as best shown in Fig. 10, The knife is held down upon said supporting strip by gravity due to the use of a weighted cross bar 40 supported above the knife on brackets 41 and 42 at one side of the pivots 30.

rlhe supporting bar 32 has notches 43 in its upper face in which rest the inclined ends 44 of endwise movable members 45 yieldingly held down in engagement with said notches by springs 460 attached to the frame piece 39, and the rear ends of said members 45 are hinged on pivot pins 46 mounted to slide in slots 47 in blocks 48 on another transverse bar 49 extending between the sides of the frame 1, as best shown in Fig. 12. The. pivot pins 46 are normally pressed forward by leaf springs 47 fastened intermediate of their ends to the blocks 48 and having their looped ends 490 en aged with the ends of said pivot pins. T e inclined outer ends of the members 45 carry rollers 50 which support them in the notches 43 and also provide an antifriction surface for the pans to pass over when said members and the bar 32 are rocked over and depressed, as shown in Fig. 14. Said inclined ends of the members 45 are yieldingly held down in engagement with the notches 43 in the bar 32 by the springs 460, as already explained, and said bar is normally held in raised position by springs 51 extending between depending lugs 52 on said bar and the frame piece 49.

The bar 32 is undercut at its forward edge, as at 53, to overlap the edge of each pan when the latter first comes in contact therewith.v The normal positions of the knife and supporting bar, as well as the inclined 'members 45, are shown in Fig..13, as when one pan has passed and another has not yet reached said knife and bar. It will be noted in this figure that the spring fingers 35 are resting on the supporting bar. New when the approaching pan has advanced into contact with the bar 32, the edge of said. pan passes under the undercut edge thereof, as shown in Fig. 14. At the same time, the edge of the pan engages the inclined e1'1ds44V of the members 45, and under the pressure of said pan being fed along by the conveyer said members are pressed rearward and downward and the ar as also shown in Fig. 14, so that the fingers of the knife slide "0H of said bar and onto the pan, where they remain-until the an passes and all of the biscuits or cakes iiave been removed therefrom. The knife is then rocked by the hooked ends 26 of the strips 27 coming in contact with the rollers 25 on the |arms 24,' so as to raise said iingers out of the way of the cleat 7 as shown 1n Fig. 15, said fingers being dropped again when the rollers have passed beyond the hooked ends. of the arms after said cleat has passed andthe bar32 has been returned to normal position as inFig. 13.

Guide strips 54 are arranged along the upper edges of the sidesof the frame 1 to properly position the pans as they pass through. At the intake end of the machine there are cutout portions 55 in 'said guide strips through-which spring pressed rollers 56 and 57 extend to more firmly hold the pan in proper position. The rollers 56 press against the ends of the pans, while the rollers 57 enga e the top surfaces ofthe pans and have anges 58 to engage the ends thereof. Said rollers 57 serve to hold the pans down so that they will properly engage `under the undercut edges of the supporting bar 32. @ther rolls 59 are provided farther along in the machine to overlap the guide strips 54 and engage the upper edge portions of the pans after they have passed over the bar 32 and below the helfe, as shown in Fig. 16. y

After the biscuits or cakes have been removed from the pans, they pass onto an endless apron 60 shown in Figs. 1, 3 and 4, which travels over a shaft 61 and a beveled strip 62. Motion is imparted to said apron by a sprocket chain 63 passed over suitable sprocket wheels on said shaft 61 and the conveyer shaft 2, respectively, as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3. Said apron 60 moves 'at substantially the same speed as the conveyer, so that the biscuits or cakes when transferred from the pans to this apron will have the same relative positions as they did on the pans.

The biscuits or cakes 9 are delivered by said apron 60 to another endless agir-on 64 which is driven at a slower spe d by a sprocket chain 65 running over sprockets on a shaft 66 at one end o said apron and on the conveyer shaft 2, respectively, at the opposite side of the machine from the chain 63. rlhe intake end of said apron 64 is passed around a fixed strip 660, Fig. 3, arranged below the discharge end of the apron 60. An inclined strip 6 is preferably arranged across the discharging end of said 32 is rockedrearward and downward,

'apron 60 to prevent the cakes or biscuits from turning over as they drop onto the apron 64.

Said apron 64 deli-vers `the, biscuits or cakes 9 to still another l endless apron 68 which is driven at a still slowerA speed by a sprocket chain `69 extending between sprockets on the shaftsv 66 and a shaft 70 at one end of said apronA 68, the other end of said apron passing over .a xed rod 71. -The chain 69 is preferably arranged on the same side of the machine as the chain 65, as shown in Fig. 1.

ln order to retain the biscuits or cakes in alined rows in passing through the machine, several rotary brushes72'and 73 are arranged across the machine in advance of the knife for helping to feed the thereto; Another solid brush 74 is yarranged immediately above the knife to feed the biscuits or cakes up over said knife. Said brushes 72, 73 and 74 are driven from the shaft 16 by chains 75, 76 and 77. A skeleton brush 78 is arranged over the apron 64 for keeping and another solid brush 79 is arranged just in advance of the discharge end of the apron 64 for preventing the biscuits from turning over as they are dropped from said apron to the apron 68. Said brushes 78 and 79 are driven from the shaft 15 through a sprocket chain 80 running to an idler sprocket 81, a chain 82 runningV from saidv idler to the brush 78, and another chain 83 running from the brush 78 to the brush 79. llt will thus be seen that all of the operating parts of the .machine are driven from the conveyer 6 which may be actuated by any suitable means, as adrivin belt 84 passed over a pulley 85 on the sha 3, as shownv in Figs 1, 2 and 8.

` he aprons 60,64 and 68 preferably have their upper bights supported by boards 86, 87 and 88, respectively, as best shown in Figs 1 and 3. Where circular or oval bisthe biscuits or cakes in line,

brushes are used. 'lwo solid cuits or cakes are to be handled by the machine, the boards 87 and 88 preferably have grooves 89 and 90, respectively, formed in their upper surfaces in line with the travel of the rowsv of biscuits or cakes. When finally stacked on the apron 68, the biscuits or cakes are delivered onto a table 91 which also preferably has grooves 92 in its upper surface to retain them in well defined rows.

In operation, the pans, containing the biscuits or cakes as they come from the ovens, are placed on the conveyer 6 and are carried along by the cleats 7 below the rocking knife having the spring fingers 35 which remove the biscuits or cakes from said pans and lead them under the influence of the brush 74 onto the apron 60, the pans being carried along below said knife by the conveyer and finally delivered at the delivery end of the machine below the table 91. The biscuits or cakes at the sam'e time are carried' along on the apron and discharged onto the apron 64, being slightly overlapped on said latter apron due -to its slower speed. When the biscuits or cakes are delivered by the apron 64 onto the apron 68 they are still further overlapped or stacked by reason of the still slower speed of said apron 68, so that when discharged onto the table 91 said biscuits or cakes are closely stacked ready to be picked up-in groups' for placing in the boxes in which they are 'to be shipped and sold. While rthe table and the supporting boards of the aprons 64 and 68 are shown with rounded or concave grooves, especially designed for 'round cakes or biscuits, it is obvious that the machine may be also used for stacking square or rectangular biscuits or cakes and said grooves omitted or suitably shaped to correspond to the form of the articles handled. As best lshown in Fig. 3, the cleats 7 project Well above the pans 8 and serve as stops for preventing the biscuits or cakes 9 from being pushed off of one pan onto another during the operation of removing or stripping said pans, asmight otherwise result.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Iletters Patent of the United States is 1. In a biscuit stacking machine, the combination with means for carrying pans of biscuits through the machine, of means for removing said biscuits from the pans, and

means for loosening said biscuits from the pans before removal.

2. In amachine of the character described, the combination with means for conveying pans of biscuits through the machine, of means for removing said biscuits from the pans, means for loosening said biscuits from the pans before removal, and means for stacking said biscuitsafter removal.

3. Ina machine of the character described, the combination with means for conveying pans of biscuits through the machine, of

. means for removing said biscuits from the pans while the latter are in motion, and means for loosening said biscuits from the pans before removal.

4. In a machine of the character described, the combination with means for conveying pans of biscuits through the machine, rotary cams actuated by said conveying means, intermediately pivoted levers actuated by said cams for Fstriking each pan while it is in motion for loosening the biscuits therefrom before removal, and means for removing said biscuits from the pans.

5. In a machine of the character described, the combination with means for conveying pans of biscuits through the machine, means for removing said biscuits from the pans,

intermediately pivoted levers having striking pads on one of their ends, and means for actuating said levers to cause said padded ends thereof to strike each pan as it moves throu h the machine for loosening the biscuits rom .the pans before their removal therefrom. i

6. In a machine ofthe character described, the combination with means for conveying pans of-biscuits through the machine,l of guides for said pans extending along the sides of their path of movement, spring pressed rollers extending through the guides and horizontally movable for yieldingly engag'ing the lateral edges of the pans for holding them in proper position, and means for removing the biscuits from the pans.

7. In a machine ofthe character described, the'combination with means for conpressed rollers extending through the guides and vertically movable to engage the upper faces of the edges of the pans for holding them down upon the conveying means, and means for removing said biscuits from the pans.

8. In a machine of the character described,

the combination with means for conveying pans of biscuits through the machine, of spring pressed rollers vertically movable for engagin the upper faces of the edges of the pans or holding them down upon the conveying means, said rollers having flanges overlapping the lateral faces of the edges of the pans, and means for removing the bist l cuits from the pans. v

9. In a machine of the character described, the combination with means for conveying pans of biscuits through the machine, of a transverse rocking knife for removing said biscuits from the pans, means for supporting said knife normally above the Vplane of the pans, means for displacing said supporting means as each pan reaches it in order to bring the knife down onto the pan, means arranged above said knife for pressing it into ,contact with the surfaces of the pans when the supporting means is displaced and during the passage of the pans below said knife, and means for raising said'knife after `passing over one pan until the next pan itc isc

whereby said fingers will conform to any irregularities in said surfaces, and means for raisin said knife after each pan passes.

11. n a machine of the character described, the combination with means for conveying pans of biscuits through the machine, of a transverse rocking knife for removing the biscuits from the pans, a weighted bar extending above said knife for pressing it into contact with the pans by gravity, means for supporting said knife above the surface of the pans during the intervals between pans and means for removing said supporting means when each pan reaches a position below the knife.

12. In a machine of the character described, the combination with means for conveying pans of biscuits through the machine, of a transverse knife, for removing the biscuits, from the pans, a transverse bar on which the edge of the knife rests between pans, means for displacing said bar when each pan reaches a point below the knife, and means for raising the knife and returning the bar to normal position below the edge thereof after each pan has passed.

13. In a machine of the character described, the combination with means for' to normal position below the edge of the I knife after each an has passed.

14. In a mac ine of they character described, the` comblnation with means for removing the biscuits from the pans, of an endless apron for receiving the biscuits after removal, another apron moving at a slower speed for partially stacking the biscuits as they come from the lirst apron, and a third apron moving at a still slower speed for further stacking the biscuits after being discharged by the second apron.

15. In a machine of the character described, the combination with means for removing the biscuits from the pans, of an moving the biscuits from the pans, of ank Y endless apron for receiving the biscuits after removal, another apron moving at a slower speed for stacking the biscuits as they come from the rst apron, and a skeleton brush arranged across the second apron and having spaced tufts arranged between the rows of biscuits for the purpose' specified.

17. In a machine of 4the character described the combination' with an endless conveyer, of cleats extending across said conveyer at intervels for propelling pans of biscu1ts through the machine, and means for removing the biscuits from the pans in transit, said cleats extending above the pans and serving as stops for preventing the biscuits from being pushed off of one pan onto another during removal.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

FRANK BLANDO. 

